I‘ve just got back from a fascinating three days in North Portugal, first stop–Porto. They say it’s a ghost town in the making, where the youngest and brightest have fled and left the city to the elders, and the sorry state of many of Porto’s beautiful tiled townhouses wouldn’t convince you otherwise. But squeezed in between the abandoned façades, the dog-eared shop fronts and the flickering art deco neons, there is a new hip scene emerging in Porto and it’s got serious heart. It’s not one of those cities where it’s hugely obvious which local and off-beat neighbourhoods are best to explore, or where to find the quirky shops and restaurants, but hey, I guess that’s my job, so follow me…
